Springfield man fired revolver before officers killed him, chief says

Police released the names Tuesday of the three Springfield officers involved in a shooting that killed a man early Sunday morning.

Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams said officers Joshua Brown, Daniel Carlson and Brandon Gonzales have been placed on administrative leave after they fired on James Lewis, 44, just after 3:30 a.m. Sunday at National Avenue and Lynn Street.

Williams said the officers shot Lewis after he pointed a gun at them.

At a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Williams provided several new details about what led up to the shooting early on New Year's Day.

Williams said Lewis called 911 on himself at about 3:30 a.m. Sunday, saying he was at Silver Springs Park with a gun and was going to kill his wife.

When officers arrived at Silver Springs Park, Williams said, Lewis was riding around on a bicycle and wouldn't communicate with officers.

Williams said Lewis displayed a gun as he led officers eastbound through the park.

Officers tried to use a Taser and bean bags on Lewis, but those attempts were not effective, according to Williams.

At one point, Williams said, Lewis fired off "one or two rounds" from his revolver, but officers did not believe he was shooting at them.

The officers followed Lewis through the park to an area near the intersection of National Avenue and Lynn Street where Lewis pointed his gun at the officers and they opened fire, according to Williams.

Lewis was transported to the hospital where he later died.

Williams said the encounter lasted about 11 minutes before officers fired on Lewis.

Williams said part of the incident was captured on patrol car dashboard camera footage. He declined to say whether the actual shooting is on video and he said he would not release the video until Springfield Police Department detectives complete their investigation and the case is reviewed by the Greene County Prosecutor's Office.

He said he hopes his detectives will complete their investigation in 30 days.

Lewis' family members told the News-Leader on Monday that Lewis had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and they wonder if he was having an episode Sunday morning.

Man killed by Springfield police had mental illness, family says

Williams said police had contacted Lewis more than 60 times before Sunday's shooting and in many of those instances "some type of mental issue was a factor."

Williams said the officers who responded to the scene Sunday morning did not recognize Lewis.

The News-Leader reported in September on the efforts made by the Springfield Police Department, and others in the community, to deal with people suffering from mental illness. The department reported at the time that about 20 percent of the force had gone through the 40-hour Crisis Intervention Training, which teaches police officers how to better recognize and deal with mentally ill individuals.

Williams said all of his officers go through 15 hours of mental health awareness training, but none of the officers who were on scene at the time of the shooting Sunday had gone through the CIT training.

He said he doesn't think any further training could have prevented Sunday morning's outcome.

"If someone doesn't engage with you, then you can't utilize that training to help them," Williams said.

Williams pointed out the efforts made by the officers to speak with Lewis and subdue him with less-lethal options as he made his way through the park.

Williams said it wasn't until Lewis pointed a gun at officers from 10 feet away that they opened fire.

"In my estimation, the officers did exactly what they were supposed to do," Williams said. "Once he got out on a street and potentially could go into a residential area with a firearm, we’re not going to let anybody get anywhere outside of that containment. I wish he would have just dropped the gun and been compliant."

Williams said he had not seen the autopsy report as of Tuesday afternoon and he did not know how many times Lewis had been shot.

Lewis did not have a wife. His family said he was going through a separation from a longtime girlfriend.

Williams said police do not believe that woman was in the area of Silver Springs Park early Sunday morning.